A state prosecutor said Thursday that Bukurim Miftari has been dishonest with his family about committing murder before an Anchorage Superior Court judge gave him a 61-year sentence.
"No one else had the motive to kill (Kristen Reid)," said district attorney Sharon Marshall.
Miftari, 24, was found guilty in December of murdering Reid, his ex-girlfriend, in 2012. He was convicted on all counts, which included charges of kidnapping and tampering with evidence in addition to first- and second-degree murder.
After maintaining his innocence over the course of the trial, Miftari chose not to speak at the sentencing.
Family and friends from both sides of the tragedy packed the courtroom on Thursday.
Miftari's family said he was a good person who would go out of his way for others. The person who murdered Reid remains at large, they said.
"The news makes him look like a dangerous person; he's actually caring. … Every day he's in jail the real culprit is still out there," said Latif Shabani, Miftari's cousin.
However, Marshall and Judge Kevin Saxby said all the evidence pointed to Miftari.
On Sept. 17, 2012, an Anchorage police officer found Reid lying in a ditch along Fairbanks Street after a passerby reported Miftari's blue Chevrolet Tahoe parked and abandoned in the middle of the street.
Reid was nearly naked and had been shot through her left temple. She was taken to a hospital and declared brain dead. Reid was removed from life support three days after the shooting.
Prosecutors argued Miftari was driven by jealousy to kill Reid, who they said had been preparing to end her relationship with the then-21-year-old Miftari.
Reid, who was 30 when she died, was married to a man in prison and was dealing drugs at the time, according to testimony at trial. The defense argued that her illegal dealings led to her death and that someone had staged the crime scene so it appeared Miftari killed her.
The detectives' investigation was thorough and led them to Miftari, Marshall said.
"Everyone wants to say he fell victim to a vicious cougar. He was an adult who chose to have a relationship," she said.
The state requested a composite sentence of 99 years due to Miftari's unwillingness to accept responsibility.
Defense attorney Rex Butler argued for his client with the jurors' guilty verdicts in mind. He said the court should not discount Miftari's prospects for rehabilitation.
"He respects the jury's verdict but has a right to maintain innocence," Butler said.
And Butler held the argument that what really happened at the crime scene is unknown. He recommended a sentence of 25 years.
Saxby said before delivering the sentence that the evidence showed Miftari planned to exert his dominance over Reid through violence, but the shooting was "probably" not thought out.
The families of Reid and Miftari exchanged some heated words while filing out of the courtroom; Miftari told an attendee he loved him before being escorted out of sight.